1. Field the Invention
This invention relates generally to toy vehicles and more particularly to toy vehicles with pneumatic launchers.
2. Background Art
Pneumatic launchers for lightweight toy vehicles are old in the art. U.S. Pat. No. 4,076,006 issued Feb. 28, 1978 to Breslow et al. discloses a simple toy rocket pneumatic launcher including a generally flat base for positioning on a supporting surface such as a floor, table or the like; a flexible air impact bulb of a material adapted to withstand sudden impact by a user's hand or foot is mounted on the base and, through an integral conduit, is in pneumatic communication with a launching tube mounted on the base for pivotal movement. The child's own breath is used as the power source for the launching tube extending out from the base that is placed upon a horizontal supporting surface to lunch a toy car disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,438,587 issued March 27, 1984 to Marino. Piston assemblies operated by a child hitting or pushing the top of the launcher are attached to bases supported on the floor and connected to track sections forming part of a game disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,513,967 and 4,605,230 issued Apr. 30, 1985 and Aug. 12, 1986, respectively, to Halford et al. In U.S. Pat. No. 4,223,472 issued Sept. 23, 1980 to Fekete et al., a toy projectile launching device having a main tubular member in fluid communication with an air pump, an air storage tank and a projectile launching housing rotatably coupled to the main tubular member are all supported on a base. Carried by the base of U.S. Pat. No. 4,329,808 May 18, 1982 to Rich et al. is a paper airplane folding device and a pneumatic launcher for the completed airplane. However, there remains a need for a toy vehicle with a handheld pneumatic launcher that may be easily transported, aimed and used by a child.